Apparatus for applying a slip of marble paper onto the bound edge of piled sheets of paper

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for applying a slip of marble paper onto the surface of the back or bound edge and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of a book or piled sheets of paper, comprising a pair of spaced, elongated guide members on which a slip of marble paper is supplied having one surface thereof coated with adhesive and turned upside; a pair of spaced gripping bars disposed above the guide members; a pair of spaced pressure rollers disposed below the guide members; and drive means for moving the gripping bars toward each other and at the same time downwardly toward said guide members and pressure rollers. The book or piled sheets of paper bound along one edge thereof is inserted between the gripping bars, with the back or bound edge thereof facing down, so that the surface of the back or bound edge contacts the central portion of the adhesive surface of the slip of marble paper. Then the gripping bars grip the book or piled sheets of paper and moves them downwardly as far as the lateral marginal portions of the slip of marble paper are bent by contact with the pressure rollers so as to be applied onto those portions of the opposite faces of the book or piled sheets of paper which are adjacent to the back or bound edge thereof to which the central portion of the slip of marble paper has been applied.

Sept. 5, 1972 YASUJI SUGIOKA APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A SLIP OF MARBLE PAPER ONTO THE BOUND EDGE OF FILED SHEETS OF PAPER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 16, 1970 w QT. J in W i H z a .\.w\ v I 5 5 6 6 INVENTOR K46'UJ/ Sue/0K4 ATTORNEY Sept. 5, 1972 YASUJI SUGIOKA 3,539,352

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A SLIP 0F MARBLE PAPER ONTO THE BOUND EDGE OF PILED SHEETS OF PAPER Filed July 16, 1970 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR V/I6'UJ/ SUGIOKA BY V C i v ATTORNEY United States Patent C) US. Cl. 156556 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for applying a slip of marble paper onto the surface of the back or bound edge and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of a book or piled sheets of paper, comprising a pair of spaced, elongated guide members on which a slip of marble paper is supplied having one surface thereof coated with adhesive and turned upside; a pair of spaced gripping bars disposed above the guide members; a pair of spaced pressure rollers disposed below the guide members; and drive means for moving the gripping bars toward each other and at the same time downwardly toward said guide members and pressure rollers. .The book or piled sheets of paper bound along one edge thereof is inserted between the gripping bars, with the back or bound edge thereof facing down, so that the surface of the back or bound edge contacts the central portion of the adhesive surface of the slip of marble paper. Then the gripping bars grip the book or piled sheets of paper and moves them downwardly as far as the lateral marginal portions of the slip of marble paper are bent by contact with the pressure rollers so as to be applied onto those portions of the opposite faces of the book or piled sheets of paper which are adjacent to the back or bound edge thereof to which the central portion of the slip of marble paper has been applied.

This invention relates to an apparatus for applying a slip of paper such as marble paper or the like onto the back or bound edge and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of a book or piled sheets of paper.

There are known machines of the type which mechanically performs what were previously done by the human hand. In the known machines, however, the manual operation is simply replaced by mechanical operation. That is, the mechanical operation comprises three steps, that is, the step of applying a piece of marble paper one surface of which is coated with adhesive material onto the peripheral area of one of the opposite faces of a book or piled sheets of paper bound along one edge thereof, the step of bending the marble paper to cover the surface of the back or bound edge of the book or piled sheets of paper and the step of applying the remaining marginal portion of the marble paper onto the adjacent peripheral area of the other face of the book or piled sheets of paper. These three steps are performed by operating three individual handles or levers provided on the machine, and the operator must observe to what extent or degree the marble paper has been applied to the book or piled sheets of paper, and accordingly operate the levers successively. Indeed, the operation is mechanically performed, but in view of rationalization of the work, there is left much to be improved.

In view of the above defects, this invention provides a machine which is capable of automatically applying a slip of marble paper or the like onto the surface of the back or bound edge and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of a book or piled sheets of paper. In the following pages 3,689,352 Patented Sept. 5, 1972 the piled sheets of paper bound along one edge thereof will be referred to simply as a book and the surface of the bound edge, as the back of the book. In accordance with the invention, when a book is simply placed on a predetermined place in the machine, the application of a slip of marble paper is automatically conducted, and the finished book with the marble paper applied in place is automatically delivered out of the machine, so that there is no need for handling any levers or the like as in the prior art machines of the type. The slip of marble paper is applied and adhered to the back and adjoining marginal areas on the opposite faces of the book substantially simultaneously, thereby avoiding wrinkles or local displacement of the applied marble paper which would otherwise occur with the prior art machines in which the application is conducted step by step. With the machine of this invention, the marble paper can be very neatly applied to the book.

The invention, with its above and other features and advantages, will be more clearly understood by reading the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals in different figures denote corresponding parts, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the machine of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1 with some parts removed therefrom to show the concealed mechanism in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view, on an enlarged scale, of the principal portion of the machine;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but showing the parts in a different operative position;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a marble paper feeding device and a cutter used with the machine of FIGS. l-S.

In FIG. 1 the whole structure of the machine is generally designated by 1, and comprises a base 2 supporting a pair of horizontally extending guide members 3 and 4 spaced a predetermined distance apart from each other. The guide members 3 and 4 have upper guide surfaces 5 and 6, respectively, which receive thereon a slip of marble paper fed by a suitable device to be described later and provided at the left-hand side in the figure. When a required length of marble paper has been fed, the feeding is stopped and the length is cut off. The feeding of the marble paper is topped in the following manner: A photoelectric switch 8 is mounted on a fixed rail 7 so that it is positionally variable along the rail 7. As shown in FIG. 2, the switch 8 comprises a lamp 9, a lens 10 and a photoelectric element 11 so that the light from the lamp 9 is passed through the lens 10 onto the reflecting surface 12 of the guide member 3, from which the reflected light is received by the photoelectric element 11. As the slip of marble paper is supplied on the guide surfaces 5 and 6, it intercepts the light from the lamp 9. Normally the photoelectric element 11 receives the light reflected by the reflecting surface 12, but when the slip of marble paper has come to intercept the light from the lamp 9, no light is received by the photoelectric element 11 any longer. Due to the change in the amount of light received by the element 11, it produces an electrical signal, which is used to stop the feeding of the marble paper and cut a required length therefrom. The feeding and cutting operation will be described later again.

The tape of marble paper supplied onto the guide members 3 and 4 has already had suitable adhesive on its upper surface. A book 20 bound along its one edge is inserted between a pair of gripping bars 21 and 22 in such a manner that the opposite ends of the book coincide with the opposite ends of the slip of paper on the guide members 3 and 4. To this end, the position of the photoelectric switch 8 is preset on the rail 7 so that the length of the slip of marble paper to be cut is equal to that of the book, and the book 20 is inserted with its one end coinciding with the cut end of the marble paper since the cutting of the marble paper is conducted at a fixed posi tion and the cut end of the paper is also at a fixed position.

The gripping bars 21 and 22 are supported on the top ends of two pairs of levers 23 and 24. In each pair, the lever 23 is L-shaped while the other lever 24 is nearly straight, and the two levers are pivotally connected by a pin 25 to each other. A spring 26 is provided between the lower ends of the levers 23 and 24. The lever 23 is fixed to the upper end of a post 28 which is vertically movable within a cylindrical guide tube 27 dependent from the under surface of the base plate 2. Due to the resiliency of the spring 26, the lever 24 is always urged counterclockwise about the pin 25, but normally a bearing roller 29 on the base plate 2 prevents the counterclockwise rotation of the lever 24.

Each post 28 is urged downwardly by means of a spring, 30, but the downward movement of the post 28 is normally prevented by engagement of the lower end of gfie post 28 with a cam disk 32 mounted on a drive shaft The book 20 that has been inserted between the gripping bars 21 and 22 has its downwardly facing surface of the bound edge or back brought into contact with the upper adhesive surface of the slip of marble paper, and together with the slip the book 20 gravitates farther downwardly between a pair of pressure rollers 32 and 33. As the book gravitates, it actuates a switch lever 34, whereupon a motor not shown drives a chain 35. As the chain 35 is driven, a sprocket wheel 36 is rotated to rotate the drive shaft 31. This causes the cam disks 32 to rotate so that the vertical posts 28 are gradually lowered clue to the resiliency of the springs 30. This in turn lowers the levers 23 and 24 together as far as the blockage provided by the rollers 29 is removed, whereupon the resiliency of the springs 26 turn the levers 24 counterclockwise about the pins 25. This means that the upper end of each lever 24 moves toward the upper end of the lever 23 so that the gripping bars 21 and 22 hold or clamp the book 20' therebetween. Farther downward movement of the levers, the book as it is held between the bars 21 and 22 is farther lowered.

The pressure rollers 32 and 33 disposed below the guide members 3 and 4 have their respective shafts 43 and 44 passing through slots 45- and 46 respectively formed in a side plate 45' so as to be journaled by bearings 47 and 48, respectively. The bearings 47 and 48 are yieldably urged by springs 49 and 50, respectively, toward each other so that the gap between the rollers 32 and 33 is normally relatively small. However, as the lower edge of the book 20 is forced in between the rollers 32 and 33, these rollers are pushed apart against the force of the springs 49 and 50, thereby pressing the lateral, marginal portions of the slip of marble paper onto those areas of the opposite faces of the book adjacent to the back thereof.

Below the rollers 32 and 33 there is a pressure plate 51 resiliently supported by springs 52 on the base plate 2. A piece of felt 53 covers the upper surface of the pressure plate 51. Due to the soft, rugged surface of the felt, it is possible to evenly afiix the slip of marble paper onto a rugged surface of the back of the book.

As previously mentioned, as the book 20 held between the bars 21 and 22 is lowered, the downwardly facing back thereof abuts on the felt 53 of the pressure plate 51 so as to be pressed thereto. Under the condition, the book 20 is farther lowered against the resiliency of the springs 52. In other words, the application of the marble paper onto the back of the book 20 is effected resiliently by means of these springs 52. Since the lower edge of the book 20 with the marble paper aflixed to the back thereof is forced in between the pressure rollers 32 and 33, the rollers securely apply the lateral marginal portions of the marble paper onto those areas on the opposite faces of the book adjacent to the back or lower edge surface thereof, with the pressure plate 51 pressing the marble paper onto the back of the book. Thus, the application of the marble paper has been completed. As mentioned above, by simply inserting a book 20 bound along one edge thereof into the gap between the gripping bars 21 and 22 as far down as its lower edge abuts on a slip of marble paper on the guide members 3, 4, it is possible to apply the marble paper onto the back and adjacent areas on the opposite faces of the book 20 automatically and substantially simultaneously. In FIGS. 3 and 4, the letter M designates the slip of marble paper.

When the application of the marble paper has been completed, the book 20 is removed from the position. In the illustrated embodiment, the book 20 is returned to its original position. When the operation of application of the marble paper has been completed, the posts 28 are in their lowest position. However, as the cam disks 32 on the drive shaft 31 is rotated, the posts 28 are raised so that the levers 23 and 24 and consequently the gripping bars 21 and 22 holding the back 20 therebetween are also raised. As these members approach their respective original positions, the levers 24 are rotated by the bearing rollers 29 clockwise about the pins 25, so that the gripping bars 21 and 22 move away from each other thereby releasing the grip on the book.

In this case, if the rollers 32 and 33 were held in contact with the opposite faces of the book 20' as the latter was raised, the marble paper that had been afiixed to the book 20' might be peeled off therefrom by contact with the rollers. To prevent this, the rollers 32 and 33 are moved away from each other when the book 20 is raised upward. To this end, the bearings 47 and 48 are supported by brackets 61 and 62, respectively, which are in turn mounted on top supporting levers 63 and 64, respectively. The levers 63 and 64 are pivoted at 65 and 66 respectively and urged by a connecting spring 67 so that their respective lower ends are kept in contact with cam disks 68 and 69, respectively, mounted on the drive shaft 31. Normally the levers 63 and 64 are kept apart by the cam disks 68 and 69 against the force of the spring 67 so that the rollers 32 and 33 are displaced toward each other. The displacement, however, is restricted by the slots 45 and 46 through which the shafts 43 and 44 of the rollers 32 and 33 pass. When the gripping bars 21 and 22 begin to be raised upward from their lowest position, the cam disks 68 and 69' come to be so positioned that the lower ends of the levers 63 and 64 come closer to each other. As a result, the spring 67 causes the upper ends of the levers 63 and 64 and consequently the rollers 32 and 33 to move apart from each other. This condition continues till the gripping bars 21 and 22 are raised to its original position. While the rollers are thus kept apart, they are out of contact with those portions of the marble paper which have been affixed to the opposite faces of the book, so that there is no danger of the marble paper being peeled off from the book faces.

FIG. 5 shows a device for feeding a tape of marble paper together with a tape cutter. The former device is generally designated by 71 and comprises a plurality of guide rollers 72, a capstan roller 73 and a pressure roller 74. A tape 75 of marble paper drawn from a reel not shown is guided by the rollers 72 to pass between the capstan roller 73 and the pressure rolle 74. The roller 73 starts its rotation when a start switch not shown is operated. Since the pressure roller 74 is urged against the roller 73, the tape therebetween is moved so as to lie on the guide members 3 and 4. When the photoelectric switch 8 has detected the forward edge of the tape 75 on the guide members 3 and 4, the signal produced by the switch 8 stops the rotation of the roller 73 and consequently the feeding of the tape 75. While the tape 75 is passing about the guide rollers 72, it contacts a rotary drum 77 disposed in a container 76 containing suitable adhesive material.

so that the tape on the guide members 3 and 4 has its upper surface coated with the adhesive.

The tape cutter 81 is disposed between the roller 73 01 74 and the guide members 3 and 4. In the illustrated embodiment, the cutter 81 comprises an electrically heated wire 82 of. a ribbon-like shape, a supporting member 83 for the wire 82, a lever 85 for supporting the member 83 and a shaft 84 for pivoting the lever 85. The signal produced by the photoelectric switch 8 when it has detected the forward end of the tape of marble paper on the guide members 3 and 4 causes the lever 85 to swing clockwise in FIG. about the shaft 84 to bring the wire 82 into contact with the tape. When the wire has burnt and cut the tape, the lever 85 is returned in the opposite direction to its original position. Thus a required length of marble paper has been cut from the tape, and then a new book 20 is inserted between the gripping bars in the same manner as previously mentioned.

As described above, in accordance with the invention, by simply inserting a book or piled sheets of paper bound along one edge thereof into a predetermined position in the machine, it is possible to apply a slip of marble paper to the book. The application of the marble paper is effected substantially simultaneously on the back and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of the book. This eliminates the prior art separate steps of applying the marble paper first to one of the opposite faces of the book, then to the back and then to the other face thereof, with resulting simplification of the Work and decrease of the time required therefor.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus for applying a slip of marble paper onto the bound edge and adjacent areas of the opposite faces of a book comprising: a pair of spaced, elongated guide members; means for supplying a slip of marble paper to said guide members, said marble paper having an adhesive material coated upon its upper surface; a pair of spaced gripping bars disposed above said guide members to receive said book therebetween so that said bound edge contacts said adhesive coated surface of said marble paper; a pair of spaced pressure rollers disposed below said guide members; and means for causing said gripping bars to move toward each other and thence downwardly toward said pressure rollers so as to grip and hold said book therebetween and move said book downwardly between said pressure rollers in pressure contact therewith so that the marginal portions of said slip of marble paper are applied to those areas of the opposite faces of said book which are adjacent to said bound edge.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, further including means for feeding a tape of marble paper having one surface thereof coated with adhesive material onto said guide members with said adhesive coated surface oriented upwardly; and means for cutting said tape into a slip of a desired length on said guide members.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said cutting means comprises an electrically heated wire extending transversely of said tape and means for causing said wire to contact said tape thereby burning and cutting the same into said desired length.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further including an elongated pressure plate disposed below said pair of pressure rollers for yieldably receiving and pressing said slip of marble paper onto said bound edge of said book.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said causing means includes means for moving said gripping bars holding said book therebetween to the original position and causing said gripping bars to release the grip on said book.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, further including means for moving said pressure rollers away from each other at the start of said return movement of said gripping bars.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,864,766 6/1932 Schmidt 156-522 X 2,528,754 11/1950 Johnson 156-52'2' X 3,560,311 2/1971 Blair 11-1 AD FOREIGN PATENTS 1,084,237 6/1960 Germany 11-1 BENJAMIN A. BORCHELT, Primary Examiner J. M. HANLEY, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

